YOUr City ALREADY HAS FUNDING FOR SMALL BUSINESS SUPPORT. WE CAN HELP MAKE IT WORK.Turn your Tech Assistance funding into real support for your local retailers
UpNext partners with municipalities to deliver expert-led business education for your local retail owners, fully funded through the grants you already have.
2018
When we started helping small businesses
100+
Hours of on-demand retail education on the platform
25+
Courses led by experts in the retail field
For the municipalities who are done watching downtown struggle
If you have Technical Assistance (TA) grant funding and a community of small business owners who need more than a pamphlet or a one-off workshop, we can help with that.
Through TA funding, participating businesses get access to The Retail Playground — UpNext's online learning platform, specifically tailored to retail business owners. Your chosen retailers get:
Individualized support from our team
Two-year membership
Expert-led content
Community guidance
At no additional cost to them.
Simple for you. Transformative for your businesses.
Four steps from funding to a cohort of local business owners actively building better retail operations.
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Applications
Use your existing channels to invite local businesses to apply. UpNext will then provide a questionnaire to help evaluate the specific needs and points of friction for each small business.
Businesses Enroll
Once the small business is evaluated, your selected participants are onboarded into The Retail Playground and guided through the courses that best benefit their business right now. You've pre-funded their access through your TA, so it's completely free to them.
Virtual Intake + Goal Setting
Every participant meets with an UpNext team member to set priorities and map a learning path that actually fits their business.
Three months of guided learning. Two years of expert-led course access.
Participants work through curated modules on marketing, merchandising, store design, operations, wholesale, pop-ups and more, with ongoing check-ins, accountability, and concierge support from our team.
WE’VE DONE THIS BEFOREHelping municipalities revitalize local businesses since 2021
Through Project: Pop-Up, UpNext has partnered with communities to activate storefronts, support local entrepreneurs, and build lasting retail infrastructure.